Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) Reaches New 1-Year Low - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Pilgrim's Pride shares have reached a new 52-week low of $36.90, prompting discussions about potential sell-off strategies among investors.
• Recent downgrades from analysts include a reduction in the stock's rating and target price from Goldman Sachs, which is now set at $46.00.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings of $1.70 EPS, exceeding expectations, along with a revenue increase of 4.3% year-over-year.

Shares of Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $36.90 and last traded at $37.14, with a volume of 369399 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $37.36.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, September 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Pilgrim's Pride from $54.00 to $46.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Pilgrim's Pride from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Pilgrim's Pride has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $47.67.

Pilgrim's Pride Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $8.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.22 and a beta of 0.45. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $42.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.33.

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.16. Pilgrim's Pride had a net margin of 6.81% and a return on equity of 37.15%. The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Pilgrim's Pride Corporation will post 5.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Pilgrim's Pride Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were paid a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PPC. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 309.4% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 651 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 492 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride in the first quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride in the second quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 117.5% in the second quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,231 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 665 shares during the period. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton acquired a new position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride in the second quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.64% of the company's stock.

Pilgrim's Pride Company Profile

Pilgrim's Pride Corp. engages in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. It operates through the following segments: U.S., U.K. and Europe, and Mexico. The company was founded by Lonnie A.

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